Tre Mason Breaks SEC Championship Game Rushing Record vs. Missouri

The BCS No. 3 Auburn Tigers grounded and pounded No. 5 Missouri 59-42 in Saturday's SEC Championship Game, and it resulted in star running back Tre Mason racing into the record books.

Mason broke the SEC Championship's single-game rushing record early in the third quarter, eclipsing the mark of 201 set by LSU's Justin Vincent in 2003. CBS Sports' Eye on College Football Twitter account revealed the exceptional achievement:

And that wasn't the only history Mason made in the opening portion of this high-stakes showdown. ESPN Stats & Info points out how Mason passed the legendary Bo Jackson for most total yards in a season by an Auburn player:

In the 1st qtr today, Tre Mason passed Bo Jackson (1985) for the most all-purpose yards in a single season in Auburn history.

There was nothing the underdogs could do in Atlanta's Georgia Dome, as Gus Malzahn's Tigers imposed their will and let Mason be the workhorse driving one of the country's premier rushing attacks to raging success in the first half.

ESPN College Football's official Twitter highlighted just how heavily Auburn relied on the running game to get the job done in the early going:

Mason capped off both of those second-quarter touchdown drives with trips to pay dirt from seven and nine yards out respectively. This marks the fifth consecutive game in which Mason has gone over 100 yards, and leaves him with only one game all season without at least one touchdown.

But this really happened, and it was an emphatic statement by Auburn that its high-octane offense wasn't going to suffer a letdown after its epic Iron Bowl victory over Alabama. The physical tone was set early, and Mason was the featured star.